Powered by indifference, focused by caffeine

17 to 01

There’s so many things wrong with Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. I wasn’t aware until I was doing the research that lots of folks considered it non-canon. That’s incredible. For a Star Trek production to be considered non-canon by fans is exceptional, but for an actual film…The Final Frontier earns that by being pretty bad, but it’s still impressive.

TFF was ambitious in its scope and a lot of its execution, but it’s just written bad from the ground up. I think that the editing issues show some directing issues (the shuttle crash, the deck numbers), but I believe that if this had had a decent script, William Shatner would have directed it just fine. The cameras cover the garbage that’s happening and the worst performance is by William I-Need-A-Director-With-A-Good-Set-Of-Reins Shatner (he won a Razzie for this, beating out Ralph Macchio, Tony Danza, and Sylvester Stallone).

The next episode of 17 to 01 will be for Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country. UDC came out in December of 1991, so it’ll be after TNG’s season five, episode nine, “A Matter of Time.” Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UpS4LHHn88

Derek. Hates. Fun.That’s all I have to say.Except for the part where Derek said “Andy Rooney” when he meant “Benny Hill.”It only occurs to me now that Kirk likely violated a temporal prime directive in saving themselves from the probe. Like, would The Federation allow anyone else to travel in time to save their planet like Kirk saved Earth? The intervention of an alien species might be a mitigating factor, as well as the fact that the abduction of George and Gracie might have been part of a stable time loop, but the extinction of the whales was a mistake Earth made and a extinction as a result of a civilization’s shortsightedness is kind of exactly what The Prime Directive is for. Saving Earth probably should have been an additional criminal charge for him.“I Hate You” full song link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd3NG2JX6lcAlso, next week is the Season 4 supplemental and the end of 17 to 01, so there’s no movie trailer for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.

I came out of this with a much higher opinion of Search for Spock than I did going in. It’s an ensemble piece which has the requisite emotional beats to support an action movie. I do think Derek is right about the crew–rather than Kirk–taking over the ship.The original Star Trek movies do have a problem where they don’t handle dealing with younger folks better. I would prefer a Star Trek that’s more open about young kids and their new ideas without being sarcastic. Maybe that’s a bit much to ask for in this context though.Am I right? Is there some ineffable difference between Kirk’s actions at the end of Search for Spock and Kal-El’s actions in Man of Steel? It feels different, I just can’t put words to it.My misquote was from Douglas Adams. “I’ve come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies: 1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works. 2. Anything that’s invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it. 3. Anything invented after you’re thirty-five is against the natural order of things.”The Addams Family was from 1991, seven years after Search for Spock. George Takei was in Mulan.

The trailer we’re watching can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VW7neKZFKE0.

Wrathy enough? Too Wrathy? Are the Wrathy levels just right? I think that consensus is behind “enough Wrathyness.” I agree and remarkably, so does Derek. It’s always hard to quantify what goes right instead of what goes wrong. Khan has weight and depth, even if his actions are two-dimensional. Sulu and Uhura don’t do much more here than they do in The Motion Picture, but Scotty and Chekov do. The Genesis Device is one of the most MacGuffin-y of MacGuffins, but it doesn’t magically resolve the plot. Quite the opposite really.What is it that makes “Wrath of Khan” work?The trailer we’re watching can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wzG1u4zStM. I hope you like spoilers.17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

At long last and in all of its glory, and I mean more of the “all” than the “glory.”It’s really good to get back with everyone. Say what you want about how the movies undermine the series, but there’s more character work in these films than in most of the show. I know I rail against continuity, but the universe progresses here in a way that was never really possible in the TV show. Seriously though, what if Chekov had joined with V’ger here? Uhura? How different would this film have been if it had the balls to leverage its supporting cast?The trailer we’re watching can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rM4ODtN64M17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

This is pretty good. Phase II probably has the same general quality as The Original Series.Now that I’ve gritted my teeth through the compliments, let’s get into the jabs.I’m just kidding. This episode is okay, I just hate that there’s no deeper execution of the ideas underpinning this episode. My slipshod censoring here is repealed because of my deep and abiding feelings about The Confederacy.Star Trek: Phase II, “Divided We Stand” can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KChYhXhj7vY.The trailer we’re watching can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nkegWQe1ZM17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

Let’s be nice about this: we all love Walter Koenig and D.C. Fontana. On the other hand, what the hell, Walter Koenig and D.C. Fontana?Star Trek: New Voyages, “To Serve All My Days” can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_lYqGQ7iXk.17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

This is me not saying “AndORian” for about thirteen agonizing minutes. You’re welcome.

Blonde actress’ name is–I think–Holly Guess. We like her character and Ms. Guess is a gem here, a real diamond in the terrible acting.

Some people say to this day that if you say the word “frontier” three times, you can hear James Culhane moan through the trees.

Starship Exeter, “The Tressarian Intersection” can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkuJG1_2MnU.17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

“A Rock and a Hard Place” is a short episode. I mean, it’s good and bad, but it’s a way for fans to have fun first and a Star Trek facsimile second. Strangely, I think we both enjoyed it on that level. Derek’s expectation that Starfleet officers smile when they get stabbed is disturbingly accurate.

Drink.

Starship Farragut, “A Rock and a Hard Place” can be found at http://www.starshipfarragut.com/episodes.html#tabs-6.17 to 01 is available on iTunes. It updates Thursday mornings at 2:00 AM ET / 1:00 CT. We’re also amazingly on Stitcher.

In retrospect, a forty-minute YouTube playlist of Star Trek references seems a bit self-indulgent.On the other hand…tough Beeps.Special thanks to Skiltao for acquainting me with “Banned from Argo.”For sites that don’t let ads insert malware into your system, ad blockers are generally bad. I give you permission to use one on YouTube just this time. Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3uoEQNM6rlPHgOSnNSCmmTwX0PtnLr-V